Resolved an issue where tb3_manipulation simulation models were not loading

[GyuH13]

• Fixed an issue in the Gazebo simulation where loading times were excessively long and models were not being loaded properly.

[Copilot]

Pull Request Overview

This PR resolves loading issues in the TurtleBot3 manipulation Gazebo simulations by bumping package versions, updating export paths, installing mesh assets, and normalizing spawn arguments.

• Bumped package versions to 2.3.8 and added corresponding CHANGELOG entries
• Added <gazebo_ros> export for model paths and included meshes in install targets
• Changed spawn_entity pose arguments from integer to float strings and cleaned up whitespace

Reviewed Changes

Copilot reviewed 11 out of 22 changed files in this pull request and generated no comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
turtlebot3_simulations/package.xml	Version bump to 2.3.8
turtlebot3_simulations/CHANGELOG.rst	Added 2.3.8 changelog entry
turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/package.xml	Version bump; added <gazebo_ros> export for model path
turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/CMakeLists.txt	Included meshes directory in install
turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/launch/turtlebot3_home...	Changed -x/-y/-z/-R/-P/-Y arguments to float strings
turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/launch/gazebo.launch.py	Removed extra blank line
turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/CHANGELOG.rst	Added 2.3.8 changelog entry
turtlebot3_gazebo/package.xml	Version bump to 2.3.8
turtlebot3_gazebo/CHANGELOG.rst	Added 2.3.8 changelog entry (no functional changes)
turtlebot3_fake_node/package.xml	Version bump to 2.3.8
turtlebot3_fake_node/CHANGELOG.rst	Added 2.3.8 changelog entry (no functional changes)

[gemini-code-assist]

Summary of Changes

Hello @GyuH13, I'm Gemini Code Assist¹! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!

This pull request addresses a critical issue preventing the tb3_manipulation simulation models from loading correctly in Gazebo. The changes primarily involve updating package configurations to ensure Gazebo can properly discover and load the necessary robot and environment assets, alongside general version updates across several related TurtleBot3 simulation packages.

Highlights

• Resolved Gazebo Model Loading Issue: The primary goal of this PR was to fix an issue where tb3_manipulation simulation models were not loading correctly in Gazebo, as indicated by the PR title and the CHANGELOG.rst entries.
• Enhanced Gazebo Model Discovery: The turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo/package.xml has been updated to explicitly export the gazebo_model_path. This crucial change directs Gazebo to the correct locations for finding and loading simulation models, addressing a common cause of model loading failures.
• Included Mesh Installation: The CMakeLists.txt for turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo was modified to ensure that the meshes directory is properly installed. Meshes are often essential visual and collision assets for 3D models in simulation, and their absence can prevent models from rendering or behaving correctly.
• Version Bumps Across Packages: All affected turtlebot3 simulation packages, including turtlebot3_fake_node, turtlebot3_gazebo, turtlebot3_manipulation_gazebo, and turtlebot3_simulations, have had their versions incremented from 2.3.6 to 2.3.8.

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[gemini-code-assist]

Code Review

This pull request addresses an issue with loading TurtleBot3 manipulation simulation models by updating package configurations. The changes include version bumps, changelog updates, installing necessary mesh files, and adjusting Gazebo model paths.

My review highlights a significant maintainability concern with the proposed Gazebo model path configuration, which is overly broad and could cause issues in the future. I've suggested a more robust, standard approach. Additionally, I've provided feedback to improve the clarity of changelog entries for better release tracking. The other changes appear correct and contribute to fixing the reported issue.

[gemini-code-assist]

Using ${prefix}/.. to add the parent install directory to GAZEBO_MODEL_PATH is very broad and can have unintended side effects. It makes Gazebo search the entire install space for models, which can lead to slow startup times and model name collisions if other packages are installed.

A more robust and maintainable approach, following ROS best practices, is for each package that provides Gazebo models to export its own model path. For example, if this package depends on models from turtlebot3_gazebo, then turtlebot3_gazebo/package.xml should contain:

<export>
  <gazebo_ros gazebo_model_path="${prefix}/models"/>
</export>

This would correctly add the specific model path to the environment.

The current change is a workaround that hides a missing export in a dependency. I recommend removing the overly broad path to encourage fixing the root cause in the dependency package.

    <gazebo_ros gazebo_model_path="${prefix}/models"/>

[gemini-code-assist]

The changelog entry * None is uninformative. Since the package version was bumped, there was a change. A changelog should briefly describe the changes in a new version to help users and maintainers track the evolution of the package. A more descriptive entry would be more helpful.

* Maintenance release.

[gemini-code-assist]

The changelog entry * None is uninformative. Since the package version was bumped, there was a change. A changelog should briefly describe the changes in a new version to help users and maintainers track the evolution of the package. A more descriptive entry would be more helpful.

* Maintenance release.

[yun-goon]

Good!

[robotpilot]

LGTM